Through the first week of May, you're likely to see more choppers than usual flying over waterways from Barnegat to Tuckerton. They'll be helmed by new recruits to the U.S. Coast Guard Atlantic City Air Station, engaged in rotary wing air intercept pilot training.

Training helicopter (U.S. Coast Guard)
Training helicopter (U.S. Coast Guard)
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USCG officials say they'll also be visible in the skies around Ocean City and Stone Harbor. It all begins Wednesday.

Add that to fighter-jet training through August, originating at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst (JBMDL), and the skies over the shore should be bustling most of the summer.

As we learned earlier this year, when jets hit the sound barrier, we can expect occasional sonic booms and earth tremors.

USCG pIlots who obtain certification move on to missions involving national security over critical spots around the nation, including Washington, D.C.

These are the pilots who intercept potentially hostile aircraft entering restricted airspace.

The flight training is part of the qualification regimen that includes class time, a syllabus, and written and oral exams. Crews and instructors are required to complete at least two flights each day for six weeks.

Air Station Atlantic City's two search-and-rescue crews will continue flying operational and training missions as well.

 

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